Self-Efficacy

Self-efficacy is a person’s belief in their ability to act in a way that will help them reach a goal. In the world of snowboard instructing, it’s a judgement of an individual’s own riding or teaching capabilities.

Trainee’s level of self-efficacy

A trainee’s level of self-efficacy can really impact the goals the trainee sets for themselves, which activities and environments the trainee might choose or avoid, how much effort they put in, how much resilience they have, and how long they persist with a task.

Self-efficacy can be influenced by many factors, including:

Trainees with higher levels of self-efficacy tend to set bigger goals and expend more effort towards their achievement. They are also more likely to persist longer through the cognitive and associative stages of skill acquisition and stick at something even when faced with challenges. Low self-efficacy often leads to setting goals that are too easy to achieve or avoiding goal setting altogether.

Self-efficacy should not be confused with self-esteem. Self-efficacy refers to how you feel about your ability to succeed in different situations, while self-esteem refers to your respect for your own value and worth.

Recognising the level of self-efficacy a trainee has, is relatively easy. Take note of how resilient and persistent they are, how much their motivation seems to fluctuate, how quickly they bounce back after a poor performance, and how frequently they address and re-address their goals.

As a trainer, being mindful of self-efficacy and trying to build an environment within sessions where trainees improve their self-efficacy, will help to develop trainees who are more effective in pushing themselves towards their goals. Good trainers not only aim to give their trainees practical advice on how to ride and teach, but aim to foster a mindset that encourages self improvement and success outside of training sessions.

Extensive past research (Bandura in 1997, Hodges in 2008) shows a variety of forms, or influences, of self-efficacy. However, for the purpose of training snowboard instructors, consider the following four ways to help trainees improve their self-efficacy:

Mastery

Often considered to be the most influential source of self-efficacy, mastery is the result or outcome of one’s previous performance. 

A successfully completed task can influence the amount of effort and success a trainee experiences in a future task. Thus, a trainee’s mastery of a skill can heavily impact their ability to perform this skill when in a different environment or under pressure.

Mastery provides the most authentic evidence of one’s ability to succeed. In most cases, part of the reason mastery works so well is that trainees are teaching themselves that they are capable of acquiring new skills. How often do we hear the “10,000 hours of practice” theory?

An important skill for a trainer is being able to guide their trainees towards the right progression to master a skill by themselves. This could be showing them a new exercise that makes feeling a new movement easier, or giving them ideas on where to try a new trick to help them figure out something they are struggling with.

By constantly fine-tuning the level of challenge a good trainer can keep their trainees within a window where their self efficacy grows as they learn and master new skills. Reminding a trainee of previous successes and progress will also help to boost their confidence and keep them on track.

Vicarious Experiences

This is essentially a form of mastery, except it is achieved through watching another person.

This is especially important with less experienced trainees, as they will often use the success and judgement of others to validate their own success. Seeing a peer or, even better, a friend, learn something new on a snowboard can lead to the belief that the same task is within their own reach.

A trainer will often know when someone is ready to try something new. They may be too nervous to try it by themselves and seeing a peer try it first may be just the push they need to give it a go. Try pairing students up of similar abilities or those who are working on the same thing. Having trainees follow their peer’s tracks and copy their movements are simple ways to increase self-efficacy in trainees through vicarious experience.

Verbal & Social Persuasion 

This is verbal encouragement from another person. The source of this encouragement typically comes from the trainer. 

However, it can also come from a peer, a partner or family member, and even a bystander. To be compelling, however, the persuasion itself must be sincere and believable.

The effectiveness of the persuasion depends on the credibility, expertise and trustworthiness of the persuader. Generally speaking, in a snowboard training environment, credibility and expertise are established relatively easily, through the certification level held by the trainer. Trustworthiness, however, can fluctuate more readily. For this reason, building the level of trust between trainee and trainer is crucial to successful persuasion. 

Note that the negative effects on self-efficacy from poor verbal persuasions can have more of an impact than positive effects do. Therefore, it is essential to be consistent with positive and non-judgemental feedback, as one negative comment could potentially have a larger effect on a trainee’s self-efficacy than a whole stream of positive persuasion.

Emotional, Physical & Psychological Arousal 

This has to do with the trainee’s perception of their emotional, physical or physiological well-being. 

When a trainee’s self-efficacy is heavily influenced by their arousal level, it can be in a positive or a negative way.

Factors affecting their arousal level can include nervousness, energy levels, adrenaline, aches and pains, injuries, equipment, terrain and snow conditions, and even personal issues.

For example; a new snowboard may increase a trainee’s arousal level in a positive way through the excitement it creates, or in a negative way due to a lack of familiarity. Or a big powder day may push arousal levels to the extreme, through a release of adrenaline (generally positive) or create anxiety that they will get stuck and be left behind (negative). 

Arousal can also influence how snowboarders make decisions. This extreme state can also create a degree of overconfidence and can present a risk of injury, especially as terrain and tricks become more challenging. Knowing when to pump the brakes as a trainer can be important for keeping some trainees safe and damaging their self-efficacy from too many failed attempts.

The many different factors, and how they impact arousal, depend completely on the individual and their own level of self-efficacy. People who have a high sense of self-efficacy are more likely to view an increase in arousal as an energising facilitator. Whereas, a person with low self-efficacy may overthink their increased arousal and let it be viewed as a sign that they cannot complete the task. For the trainer, it is important to recognise both, try to mitigate any negative impact (or at least be understanding of it) and foster the positive impact.

Real World Application

To help trainers recognise and take advantage of different forms of self-efficacy, the trainer must first become more aware of their own level and forms of self-efficacy. Even the most experienced trainers can be somewhat disillusioned in this respect. 

It is valuable to consider when each of these has had an impact on one’s own ability to try something new or learn a skill. Taking the time to self-reflect after any positive or negative surge in one’s self-efficacy is key here.